Tower Shield Working Right?



  • In general abilities where your character waves his hands in the air (bardsong, wholeness of body, taunt, barbarian rage?) all leave your character flatfooted for the duration.

    In fact you're only not flat-footed when you're actively casting a spell or attacking something. People seem to also say potions count; I haven't checked this.



  • you have to seperate allowing a flanking attack bonus/being able to be sneak attacked with becoming flat footed.

    as I understand it casting an offensive single target spell on a ranged creature while having a mob in melee range hitting you will open up for a flanking attack bonus (and thus sneak attacks). If you cast the offensive spell on the mob meleeing you however, it will not open up the possibility to become sneak attacked - nor will you get flat footed. Spaming aoe spells apparently counts as "target everything" and will also not make you open for sneaks (as long as the attacker isn't stealthed I guess)

    Like Froach said, as long as you have queued up actions you won't be flat footed, but you might be sneak attacked or flanked attacked. tip is at the end of each casting animation, spam attack (click) the thing attacking you and you should be fine.



  • Casting a spell or drinking a potion provokes an AOO.
    Taunting on the other hand does make you flat footed.

    @4fda651e9a:

    A character is considered to be flat-footed when:

    • They are performing a non-combat task (which includes taunting).
    • They are in ready mode (have not yet acted in a combat).
    • They move outside the combat radius.
    • They are entangled, stunned, or paralyzed.
    • They are prone.
    • They are sleeping or petrified.
    • They are attacked by an unseen creature, unless the creature is heard and the character has the blind fight feat.
    • They finish casting a spell and do not have another action in their action queue.

    Once you've entered combat you shouldn't be flat footed other than that until you can rest again.

    http://nwn.wikia.com/wiki/Flat_foot

    @4fda651e9a:

    Specifics: Whenever the character makes a successful attack against an opponent who is flat-footed, cannot see them, or who is in combat with someone else, the character's blow delivers extra damage.

    You'll be getting AOO against you due to casting divine shield, and that a sneak attack because you are not in combat with that creature.

    http://nwn.wikia.com/wiki/Sneak_attack



  • @1459bce2fb=RYM:

    @1459bce2fb=cardamon:

    They'll get a +2 for flanking, your AC can be reduced by up to -6 by a taunt, and if you go flat footed (like, to drink a potion, run, cast a spell, or activate certain abilities), you'll lose Dexterity's bonus and all Dodge bonuses.

    This is not true. When you drink a potion, cast a spell or whatever, you are not flat-fooded. You simply give your enemy attacks of oportunity, but you retain all of your AC, be it dodge, Dexterity or awesomeness.

    Pretty sure I'm right. Do you get sneak attacked if you cast a spell? I get sneak attacked when I Divine Shield, which is handled like a spell, which means I'm flat-footed.



  • @e4b36c4fd7=Fraoch:

    Armour check penalty doesn't remove tumble AC on Narfell.

    Yup that's becaues it's based on ranks in it. If it wasn't based ont he skull and on your tumble score we'd ahve soem absurdly high AC dex based charicters on our server. looks over at Senria



  • Armour check penalty doesn't remove tumble AC on Narfell.



  • Incidentally, there is also an armor check penalty on the Umberhulk armor - which would further reduce your tumble.

    Not certain if this actually affects AC gained from tumble or not, or whether the loss of AC shows up on the sheet if it does.



  • @bfe993dfe9=cardamon:

    They'll get a +2 for flanking, your AC can be reduced by up to -6 by a taunt, and if you go flat footed (like, to drink a potion, run, cast a spell, or activate certain abilities), you'll lose Dexterity's bonus and all Dodge bonuses.

    This is not true. When you drink a potion, cast a spell or whatever, you are not flat-fooded. You simply give your enemy attacks of oportunity, but you retain all of your AC, be it dodge, Dexterity or awesomeness.



  • @97cef446e7=beechhawk:

    Yep ghosts can taunt, and taunt from two different opponents stack, you could have been down up to a total of -8 if they had good rolls.

    No, they don't. It'll max at -6, and a better result will replace a poorer one.



  • Yep ghosts can taunt, and taunt from two different opponents stack, you could have been down up to a total of -8 if they had good rolls.



  • While I think I must do more testing, I do remember seeing the taunted symbol in the upper right corner, so that may be why the pigs hit me on an 18. (Ghosts can taunt?)

    I was in combat with an echo while the pig hit me twice in a row with an adjusted roll of 18. Flanking bonus of +2 shows up in my log. My AC was 23, which taunt allows up to -6, correct?


    AubreyMaturin



  • @19b78569bb=AubreyMaturin:

    I wasn't concerned with getting hit on a roll of 20. That happens all the time. But twice in a row I got hit on a roll of 14+4, when my base AC was 19 and I was actively fighting with the tower shield. The stupid pig did 6 damage with each hit too. It was kind of deflating for the first time I tried using a Tower Shield.


    AubreyMaturin

    Character: Romulus Grey

    Those pigs have, one on one, only +2 AB. +4 meant flanking. You were fighting two pigs and flatfooted until you engaged. There's your problem.

    Don't try to be stealthy holding a big wall of metal.



  • 1/20. Happens more often than you'd think. Also, take the probability of a successful hit by a given foe and multiply it by the probability of a critical threat (which you can guess based on the weapon) and you have the probability of a crit, with one exception. If they their AB + 20 will not normally hit you, but the auto 20 does, then they cannot crit you.

    For example, let's say they can hit you on a 19 but no lower. Now assume their weapon has an unmodified Critical Threat range, nor keen nor Improved Critical. This monster will have a 1/10 chance of hitting you, and a 1/200 chance of hitting you with a crit.

    Similarly, AB can be increased without a spell. They'll get a +2 for flanking, your AC can be reduced by up to -6 by a taunt, and if you go flat footed (like, to drink a potion, run, cast a spell, or activate certain abilities), you'll lose Dexterity's bonus and all Dodge bonuses, but only the Taunt will register on anything you can read.



  • Could you have been taunted?



  • I wasn't concerned with getting hit on a roll of 20. That happens all the time. But twice in a row I got hit on a roll of 14+4, when my base AC was 19 and I was actively fighting with the tower shield. The stupid pig did 6 damage with each hit too. It was kind of deflating for the first time I tried using a Tower Shield.


    AubreyMaturin

    Character: Romulus Grey



  • Also a thing to remember. It doesn't matter how high your AC is, things will always hit you on a 20. Take it from someone that has a decent meatsheild, they always tend to roll them 😛



  • Ah, thanks for that clarification.

    And Aubs, the basic story is, no matter how well made your giant wall of dense metal is, it's still pretty damn hard to sneak around with.



  • Uncanny Dodge 1 works as stated.

    "The character retains his Dex bonus to AC, even if caught flat-footed or attacked by a hidden or invisible creature."

    People just tend to think that it means you keep Dodge AC when flat footed becuase of the name. The description of the feat says Dex bonus, and that's all it does.

    http://nwn.wikia.com/wiki/Uncanny_dodge

    http://nwn.wikia.com/wiki/Flat-foot



  • @87ea6ff5de=Dorakhan:

    @87ea6ff5de=Fraoch:

    @87ea6ff5de=AubreyMaturin:

    Nothing spotted me right away, but while standing still, a ghost pig suddenly took a run at me and started attacking.

    When you are not actively engaged in combat, you lose all your dodge ac. This includes ac from boots, tumble, and bard song. The reduction doesn't show on your sheet, but is applied.

    And your dex bonus AC without the uncanny dodge feat.

    Not that that works as stated either, from what all the level 2 barbarians tell me.

    AubreyMaturin, it sounds like you successfully hid despite the penalties, and then another interval passed in which you did not remain hidden from them. Remember, Hiding's a continuous comparison of your hide check and their spot check, and that is checks, not ranks. Therefore, to successfully hide 100% of the time from anything with 0 ranks in spot and and a 10 Wisdom, you need enough bonus to beat them even if they roll a 20 on the spot check, which means at least a hide of that and one more.



  • @68a0d9e3f9=Fraoch:

    @68a0d9e3f9=AubreyMaturin:

    Nothing spotted me right away, but while standing still, a ghost pig suddenly took a run at me and started attacking.

    When you are not actively engaged in combat, you lose all your dodge ac. This includes ac from boots, tumble, and bard song. The reduction doesn't show on your sheet, but is applied.

    And your dex bonus AC without the uncanny dodge feat.